Saudi Arabia vows retaliation after Houthi attack on Riyadh airport kills 12
The strike on King Khalid International Airport wounded 309 people and prompted warnings from several countries to avoid the area.
RIYADH — An attack on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed 12 people and wounded 309 others on Saturday, prompting Saudi Arabia to vow retaliation and raising the possibility of U.S. military involvement against Yemen's Houthi rebels.
The Saudi-led military coalition described the strike as a full-fledged war crime and vowed a decisive response, its spokesman said.
The Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation said four Saudi nationals were among those killed, along with two Bangladeshis and one citizen each from the United States, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Palestine and Sudan. Some of the 309 injured were in critical condition.
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U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington was considering whether to join Saudi military operations against the Houthis. "We may. We're going to look at it," Trump told reporters. "We just found out about the recent attack, so we'll make a decision. We move very quickly."
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed an American citizen was among the dead. "These reprehensible attacks demonstrate a blatant disregard for innocent civilian life," Rubio said. "They must stop now."
The attack caused significant damage and forced the suspension of all operations at the airport, a major international hub serving a city of roughly 8 million people. All flights to Riyadh were diverted or cancelled.
The United States, Canada, Britain, Germany, Spain and Australia were among countries warning their citizens to avoid the airport. Several Western embassies prohibited their staff from using the facility over the next week.
One passenger told AFP they witnessed the strike inside the domestic terminal while waiting to board. "I was on gate 403," the witness said. "I saw 401 hit, I saw injured in front of my eyes. Everyone was running."
Hospitals in Riyadh were flooded with wounded brought by ambulance and helicopter, with health officials activating a mass call-up of doctors to deal with the emergency. Medical sources told AFP that several pilgrims traveling to Mecca were among the wounded.
The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for Saturday's strike, but had claimed earlier attacks on the same airport during the previous week. The group had warned international airlines to avoid Saudi airspace, declaring it a zone of military operations.
Air India, FlyDubai, Lufthansa Group and Pakistan International Airlines had already suspended flights to and from Saudi airports after a Houthi attack on Thursday that killed three people.
The attack on Saturday was the deadliest on Saudi soil since May 2015, when a suicide bombing by the Islamic State killed 21 worshippers at a Shia mosque.
Broader conflict escalates
The strike comes amid a rapidly escalating confrontation after the collapse in July of a United Nations-brokered truce that had held since 2022.
Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces have launched an offensive seeking to reverse Houthi territorial gains along the Red Sea coast, particularly around the strategically important Bab al-Mandab Strait, a key global shipping chokepoint.
Military sources told AFP that government troops were advancing in some areas near Bab al-Mandab, though the Houthis claimed they had repelled the offensive. Independent verification of battlefield claims remains difficult.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the airport attack as heinous and reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to Saudi security under their defense pact.
The attack also forced all schools in Riyadh to move to remote learning for the coming week, according to an order from the Saudi Education Ministry.
On Sunday, the Saudi-led coalition reported that its forces had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis in Al-Kharj Governorate, and later intercepted a drone in the Eastern Province.
Trump said he intended to speak with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "What happened in Saudi Arabia is not acceptable," Trump said.
With files from CBC News, Kurdistan24 and Iran International